Emma
France's Journey to Swimming the English Channel:
2009 Training
I think I have a touch of sinusitis and whilst it's probably OK to train, given the headaches and tiredness that it's causing I decided to take the weekend off. I don't think it will make any difference to my swim at this stage if I ever get to swim that is.
This tide looks like it's going to be blown out so that means either swimming on the last tide of the year or on a spring - neither are appealing choices, but they are the choices that I have so we'll make the most of it. I am close to deferring to next year, but not quite there yet.
Water Temperature:
17.6oC
Conditions:
Chilly and a bit lumpy
After taking yesterday off I was back in business and ready to swim today. I went into the water with Alice, which was just as well as it was absolutely freezing!! Had she not been there I'm not sure that I would have lasted more than 30 seconds before thinking it was a really bad idea!! As it was I'd been asked to do 3 hours with no feed. I started off thinking that I'd get out with Alice, but then decided to try and find Ros and swim with her and I'm really glad I did. I love swimming with Ros, she just oooozzes positive vibes. The last hour of the swim was fantastic and I was really glad I did it. Question is, will this be my last training weekend?
I decided to take today off. I am so tired - physically, emotionally and mentally and this wait is killing me. It was a good decision - I managed to have a good sleep, got my hair cut and starting feeling a little human again.
Water Temperature:
18.3oC
Conditions:
Windy with a bit of chop
I arrived at the beach today not sure whether I wanted to swim. Fortunately Freda gave me a yellow hat. I didn't even ask how long - I knew I wasn't going to do any more than 2 hours.
Motivation is at an all time low and although I got through the 2 hours without any real issues, it was just about being in the water rather than any quality of training. The best bit was when I spotted someone that I could chase across the harbour (my competitive streak is never that far away). Other than that it was a bit of stop / start and not much fun.
When I made the decision last week to swim, the decision felt right. I felt at ease and calm again. Let's not forget that I deliberately chose to swim on my original tide and not to push back. Now the decision is out of my control and I can't swim when planned (by all rights by now I should have swum or be about to swim), and I am no longer at ease. I'm exhausted, lack all motivation and am really not sure I want to do this. Thing is I've told my sponsors that I will, so I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Water Temperature:
18.1oC
I was shattered last night, but still didn't sleep very well. I feel
totally physical, mentally and emotionally drained.
When I arrived at the beach this morning I expected Freda to give me a yellow hat. After all the other people swimming on the same tide as me were only given 2 or 3 hours yesterday when I was given 4. The absolute shock and disbelief must have been very clear on my face when Freda took out a red hat and gave me 4 hours. It really was the final straw. I stepped away hat in hand only to hear Freda asking me to wait before getting in the water. I hadn't realised that my emotions were quite so visible, but they must have been.
After a brief chat Freda took my hat back and suggested I took the day off away from the beach. I knew that having a real break meant being away from Dover and I couldn't easily do that so I chilled on the beach until the afternoon and then went back to the B&B for a siesta before going out for a meal with the crowd.
Water Temperature:
18.1oC
Conditions:
Variable with wind and chop at times
By rights I should be either swimming or about to swim this weekend,
certainly not facing weeks more of waiting.
I don't know what I expected in terms of hours, but I was
a little shocked by a red had and 4 hours. Still, time to shut up and
get on with it though. My motivation was a little low. I
eventually caught up with Ros only to find that she had only been given 2
hours and that meant only 30 minutes left!! Others also had yellow
hats - so why did I have a red hat?! I swam with her for the time she
had left and was then on my own again for the last couple of hours.
There wasn't a lot of high quality swimming going on, motivation seems to
have disappeared.
Water Temperature:
18.5oC
Conditions:
Sunny & calm
Today was the first time I've woken up without a real struggle in ages. As I'd slept so well last night I didn't even have any dinner so I was definitely ready for a proper breakfast today.
Following a nosebleed last night I decided to try a nose clip today - it wasn't as bad as I thought. I might just be able to get used to it and if swallowing salt water is an issue it should definitely help.
I was given 2 hours today. As it was a very, very low tide I swam with Jason to help him do his first ever full lap. What an amazing achievement for someone who is agoraphobic and has a real fear of getting out of his depth. It has to be one of the highlights of my summer. I didn't do much distance as a result but it was definitely worth it!
Question is - was this my last training session or will I be training next weekend too?......
Water Temperature:
18.5oC
Conditions:
Calm & sunny
During the week I made a decision. I decided that I really have to give the solo a go - I know I would kick myself if I didn't even try the swim so the question left was when would I make an attempt? I could delay the swim and see if I could sort the feeding out, but I decided that it was becoming more and more unlikely that I would find an alternative and all the uncertainty and indecision was becoming intolerable and was undoubtedly starting to contribute to the issues.
So I've made a decision - the swim goes ahead as planned. Eeek - that means the swim could be as soon as next week!!!
As a result of this decision the taper (from what I wonder) has started. Freda asked me to do 4 hours today. On the first feed (at 2 hours) I had maxim, at hour 3 I had hot chocolate. I spent the 4 hours swimming with Sarah and Ros (first 2 hours). The first 2 hours was unusually fast.
When I came in at the end of 4 hours Freda told me to have another drink and swim some more, so I swam another 30 minutes. I've been waiting for that to happen for 3 years - I wasn't expecting it this time!
I didn't feel sick during the swim at all during the swim, but a few hours later I started to feel ill and lightheaded. I felt like I'd done something like 500 sit ups with a hint of sick feeling. I went back to the B&B and crashed out. Woke up temporarily to watch X-Factor and have a bath and then slept like a log all night. I had something in the order of 14 hours of sleep - perhaps exhaustion was part of the problem.
Water Temperature:
18.1oC
Conditions:
Fairly calm
I was asked to do 4 hours today. When I got down to the ferry wall and turned to go across the harbour I noticed Ros in the distance so swam hard to try and catch her which I managed to do just as we reached the other wall. I swam with her until the 2 hour feed. Just at this time I came across Alice and swam with her for almost and hour and then again towards the end of the swim.
Today I tried feeding on porridge. It really sat heavily in my stomach. I didn't feel sick per se at this stage. I can't imagine feeding on this every hour though!! I ended up swimming for about 4 hrs 15 mins. After the swim I did start to feel a bit ill and this feeling continued for a couple of days. There was either something else going on or all these issues are starting to take their toll psychologically.
As I see it I have 3 choices:
1. Swim as is and hope for the best on the day.
Let's hope that I can at least play chicken with the ships this time
2. Postpone the swim to a later tide in the season and hope I can find
a feeding plan that works
3. Change my swim to a relay and either postpone the solo until
another year or accept that perhaps a solo simply isn't for me.
Not long to decide!
Water Temperature:
18.1oC
Conditions:
Fairly calm
I was sooooooo tired after yesterday's relay race. It took a huge amount of effort to get up and out of the B&B. I was a little late to the beach. Fortunately Freda understood just how much even a relay takes out of you and only gave me a 2 hour swim.
I was a little stiff to start with but after about an hour I started to loosen up and felt fine by the end of the session.
I didn't swim today, Freda and I are at a bit of loss to know what to do next. It all seems a little pointless.
Water Temperature:
17.9oC
Conditions:
Sunny & calm, slip chop in final hour
We decided to try maxim again, this time mixed with Ginger Tea. Also I've been drinking Ginger Beer during the week - anything to keep my stomach calmer. It feels a bit like clutching at straws, trying anything different but without really know what's wrong. Why do I put myself through this week in, week out?
Training was disrupted again. The town regatta was taking place so we were restricted to the area between the swimmers beach and the ferry wall and training started at the impossible early time of 6am! I felt absolutely fine for the first 5 hours - quite enjoyable actually. I did have a couple of brief breaks when I got talking to swimmers who were about to make their attempt. I started to believe that maybe this would work.
Unfortunately 10 minutes after the last feed I started to feel ill. During this hour the water had also become more choppy so I didn't know if it was because of the feed or a motion sickness problem. All I knew is that I felt very ill. I battled on which was probably a mistake as I started to get the feeling that I was going to pass out - problem was I was near the slopey groyne at the time. This was the first time I'd ever considered getting out of the water anywhere other than the beach, but there aren't many places in that stretch of water to get out safely so I swam on and fortunately did make it to the beach where I lay down for a while before I needed to make a dash to the nearest toilet. I have to admit the whole experience did scare me.
Will I ever get to the bottom of this?
Water Temperature:
17.7oC
Air Temperature: 15.6oC
Conditions:
Sunny, variable & increasing wind, slight bump to the water
I did end up getting in the water for an hour today - I simply had to, but right now it all feels like it's over. My chances are slim to non existent. I will start the solo - I'm not brave enough to admit defeat completely, but will start with the following demons:
Water Temperature:
17.3oC
Conditions: Overcast,
fairly calm and poor light into the dark
Due to a rowing regatta on Saturday we weren't able to
start until 3pm this weekend, which is a great opportunity to mix things up
a bit and swim into the dark. Strangely enough the number of swimmers was
much lower than usual - it seems some did not like the idea of back to back
swims with little recovery time! I wasn't at all bothered by this. I still
arrived at the usual time in the morning to keep the General company while
she waited just in case anyone didn't get the message about the change in
time and turned up (about half a dozen turned up only to be turned away!!).
It also gave us the chance to have a nice leisurely lunch with the beach
crew
.
The beach crew also planned to do our normal Saturday evening fish & chips
after 6pm while the swimmers were swimming and I mentioned how nice it would
be to have a few chips at that the 3 or 4 hour feed!!
I was asked to do a 6 hour swim and another swimmer who had been struggling
a bit asked to swim with me. I'm always very happy to help others, and as it
happens there ended up being 3 of us swimming in a group.
The first two hours went past very quickly and the pace we set was
comfortable but challenging (if that makes any sense). The swimmer I was
helping slowed down considerably during the third hour so I ended up
swimming a lot slower than I was intending. Also neither of the swimmers
that I was with like going all the way to the walls so what I ended up doing
was sprinting away from at the walls and catching them back up again. The
3rd hour also went quite fast and before I knew it we were in for another
feed. So far so good.
About 10 minutes after the feed I started feeling sick. Not good
.
At this point I was glad that the swimmer I was helping was slower than me
as the stomach ache caused me to stop quite frequently, but this was not a
problem as I could still keep with her. When we got into the beach I told
the General that I was feeling sick and I just had water as my feed. My
daughter was there with 3 chips for me - strangely enough having thought
about the potential of a couple of chips for the first couple of hours - I
couldn't think of anything worse at this point.
After I went off on my own, the other swimmer was now over her personal
hurdle and was also fine to make her own way. Light was starting to fade, I
was on my own and the issues of last week in Lake Zurich came flooding back.
As a result I decided to start the hour with the slightly safer water of the
pier end and once my confidence returned again I headed towards the ferry
wall. I did make it through the hour but didn't feel great and the sick
feeling hadn't passed. Lightsticks were now the order of the day.
I came in for the next feed and said that I wasn't feeling great but was
told that I was still looking good and had less than an hour to go and was
given a chocolate mini roll of which I could only face a bite and a mouthful
of feed and headed out again towards the ferry wall (this time I wanted to
get this bit out of the way first. I couldn't have swum (well swim, stop,
swim, stop) for more than about 5 minutes when I heard some shouting. I
looked up and saw a couple of the beach crew waving - I thought they were
waving me on, so in my head I was saying 'OK - I know, I know!!'. I few
strokes later and I heard them again, this time I realised that they were
telling me to turn round, which I did. Not long after this another swimmer
stopped me to tell me to return to the beach. When I got back Barrie told me
to swim to the wall and back which I agreed to before he told me he was just
joking and that I should get out (instructed by the General). This was
something I wasn't expecting.
The experience has sent me in to a deep and fast downward spiral.
I did recall that the feed that started the sick feeling in Zurich was the
lemon flavour and today I had mixed up lemon feed. Well that's going into
the bin, and I trapsed off to Tesco to buy a different flavour for Sunday,
some ginger tea and a few other bits that might make a difference. All feels
a bit like clutching at straws.
I did sleep well Saturday night, but when I woke up on Sunday I still felt a
bit crook and whatever the problem was, was still working through my system
(I'll spare you the graphical details).
Water Temperature:
20oC-21oC
Air Temperature: 27oC
Conditions:
Sunny, light wind from west, water choppier than expected
For full details of event follow Lake Zurich link.
Water Temperature:
16.8oC
Conditions:
Cloudy, occasional rain, VERY windy and lumpy
Freda asked me to do 4 hours again today. I was about 30 minutes into my swim when I realised that I had forgotten to take my blood pressure medication today - clearly I'm still a tad distracted!! I wasn't prepared to take the risk, particularly given what had happened to Rick. I swam back to the beach and Michelle and Louise offered to go and get them for me. Until then I swam between the poles while I waited.
I was swimming into the beach to get them when I came across Alice, a young relay swimmer that I'd swum with a couple of weeks ago. She was wondering who she was going to swim with today and I said I didn't know but would be happy to swim with her. She took me up on the offer. I swam to the beach and took my medication and then caught up with her. She struggled with the cold today which didn't surprise me as the wind was really strong and had a really chilling effect on the skin and there was nothing off her. She managed about 30 minutes and we arranged to meet again at 12 noon.
I happened to have my next feed with Ros and swam with her for a lap. It was great, we're very closely matched in speed. The hour flew by. Before I knew it I was back on the beach with Alice. Alice was really fast when she got in and I struggled to keep up, but as she got colder her speed dropped again. She got through the hour and I was very impressed - that can't have been easy.
I really enjoyed this session - which was an unexpected and pleasant surprise. I don't dare to believe that I'm over the full shock of Thursday, but hopefully I'll get through Zurich and if I can get through that, fingers crossed that I can move on.
Water Temperature:
16.9oC
Conditions:
Cloudy, windy and a bit lumpy
Today was always going to be a very difficult session after the shock of Rick's swim. Freda asked me to do 4 hours. I don't know if that was because she knew how I was feeling or because I've got Zurich next weekend. But is was absolutely the right amount of time.
I got in forgetting to get greased up - fortunately Barrie was on the ball and I got back out and sorted it.
I got to about the slopey groyne when it all hit me again. My goggles were filling up from the inside. I knew I needed to work through this, but it wasn't going to be easy. I decided that, today, I needed to swim with someone. So why was it that I could see absolutely no-one!! I swam to the wall and back and came across one of Michelle's relay swimmers. She had lost the group that she was swimming with so I offered to swim with her, she didn't want to trouble me and then I pointed out that I really needed to swim with someone too. It made the world of difference. I could swim again.
I went on to swim with a few other people along the way until near the end of the swim, and managed to get through the 4 hours. It wasn't easy, but hopefully I've worked the worst of it out of my system.
I've been training with Rick since probably late May /
early June. I had met him before in 2007 as he was the observer for my last
solo attempt, but I didn't really know him. However, I have got to know Rick
really well during the season, particularly during the 2 weeks I spent on a
training break in Dover. I'm now very happy to call him a great friend.
Rick, like me, is a 'value for money swimmer'. He has made two previous solo
attempts, not quite making it, but having spend over 20 hours and over 17
hours in the water. His training for this event was awesome. He lives in
Australia and would swim to work every day (you wouldn't catch me walking
into the office in speedos!!), and has done absolutely everything asked of
him since his arrival in Dover without even the slightest moan or complaint.
He was as physically and mentally prepared as anyone I'd ever seen. Just
about everyone from the Dover bunch and people all around the world were
willing him on.
I was delighted when he asked if I would crew for him - this was a success
that I definitely wanted to witness.
The weather hasn't been great during this tide window and
there was the potential that he wouldn't get to swim at all. Thursday saw a
window although the conditions weren't ideal. We arrived at the boat at 3am.
Wednesday had been pretty windy and the water hadn't yet calmed. The pilot
advised Rick that the window was only good until 10pm and then the weather
would deteriorate again. He suggested we take the boat round to the beach
and have a look. If Rick wanted he could start, if not we'd wait an hour and
reassess. The water was still a bit lumpy, but Rick elected to start anyway,
it was due to calm right down within a couple of hours.
At 0410 Rick started his swim. He looked really good and was swimming very
well. We had a beautiful sunrise not long after and we all prepared for a
long day at sea. His first feed was excellent - 10 seconds and he was off
again. At about 0500 a Seafrance ferry came very close - close enough to
pick out individual people on deck! Around this time Rick stopped and we
shouted to carry on which he did. We gave him his feed at 2 hours and all
still appeared to be OK.
10 minutes later he stopped swimming. I was on the deck at the side of the
boat and asked what was wrong. He said he had chest pains. We asked him to
swim alongside the boat but he didn't move. The pilot and I went to the back
of the boat and got him to swim at least to the back of the boat, where he
told us again about chest pains and he didn't feel good and asked for the
ladder to be put down. Knowing his mental and physical strength we knew this
was not just one of those normal channel aches and pains and let him abort
his swim.
He managed to get up the ladder onto the platform on the back where I
grabbed hold of him and helped him on the boat. That's were he collapsed. He
was only unconscious for maybe 30 seconds but it was a very scary 30 secs.
For a few seconds before we could fully assess the situation, we had a
swimmer who we didn't know was alive on the metal floor of a boat which was
awash with water. On top of the problem with the now potential heart attack
was potential hypothermia. We needed to get him inside as quickly as
possible but not too soon to cause further problems.
We did get him inside and did all that we could with the resources available
to us to ensure his safety. The pilot contacted the harbour who put the
coastguard launch on standby with a de-fib on board just in case, stopped
the traffic in the area - including ferries and cruise ships and enabled us
to get back to the harbour as quickly as possible to the emergency landing
with an ambulance on standby.
When there is an incident on land you know that you have to look after the
casualty until help arrives. In this case we had to look after him until we
got to help - very different. It must have taken something like 30 minutes
to get back.
He was checked out by the paramedics and as he had an irregular ECG was
taken to hospital.
To cut a long story short, after 12 hours they ruled out a heart attack, but
we still don't know what did happen. This highlighted to me just how great
the pilots are, the pilot and crew acted utterly professional. They are
worth every penny and some.
Clearly this incident is unusual, but because I was so
closely involved it has impacted me very deeply. Training this weekend will
be critical to get over the experience.
I wasn't able to swim today as I woke up with a bit of a
temperature and still felt sick. Hopefully the sickness is just due to the
antibiotics I've been on for a throat infection. I've now finished them so
fingers crossed it'll be better next week.
I stayed on the beach instead and witnessed every extreme of swimmer
possible. Those who just get on with it and find it apparently easy, to
grown men in pieces struggling against their internal demons. Although I
know I'm not yet in the place I need to be, it does make me realise that
things could be a lot worse.
Water Temperature:
16.4oC
Conditions: Calm
then lumpy
I was absolutely shattered when I arrived in Dover. I
wasn't at all sure I had the energy to swim. I haven't slept probably for
what seems like forever and during the week at work I've been struggling to
stay awake.
The task for the day was 6 hours which was marginally better than the 7
hours I was expecting. The first couple of hours were fantastic, the water
seemed to wake me up and my stroke felt good. Then someone flicked the
switch on the washing machine and things became MUCH more interesting!!
There was quite a strong tide with fairly strong wind too. The 3rd hour
still felt pretty good. By the time I got to the 4th hour I was starting to
feel sick again. At one point I thought it was going to cause me to fail
again, but the feeling was only intermittent and I managed to hang in there.
My shoulders and back started to ache at about this time too and I decided
to only go as far as the slopey groyne in the 5th hour. When I got there I
paused and due to the tide I found myself drifting towards the ferry wall
fairly fast!! In the last hour I kept down the pier end. I've never done
that before, but wanted to ensure that I would at least finish - the sick
feeling was more of an issue that the muscular pain.
I made the 6 hours and I'm pleased with that.
Water Temperature: 16.1oC
Conditions:
Sunny & calm
It was a big struggle to get up this morning, but I did
and got back down to Dover (about a 1hr 20min drive) nice and early. I
opened the boot of my car to get my kit out only to find that in my tired
state that I had left it at home. Impressive since I must have tripped over
it on the way out!!
However I already had my swimmers on, I'd get a hat from the beach crew and
I found a pair of goggles in the car - what else do you need?! What I was
missing was warm clothes for afterwards (I was wearing shorts & t-shirt), a
towel and earplugs!
Enough of the excuses I went to swim and swim I did. Today's task was 6
hours. Today my head was not in a good place and I still felt sick from
yesterday. I swam for just over an hour and was struggling big time, not
physically, just mentally. I came into the beach, sat in the water on the
pebbles and gave myself a good talking to. As I finished this internal
'bollocking' one of the coaches asked me to go and help out one of her relay
swimmers who was trying to get her qualifier done. I'd swum with this girl
before and knew that she really struggled with the cold. So that kept me
entertained for the next 2 hours - she did it - I was made up for her. The 2
hours did involve lots of very slow swimming including doggie paddle, so not
much distance covered. I then went in for my first feed at 3.25 hours. On
the postive that meant I had done over 3 hours with no feed and hardly
moving and I wasn't even slightly cold.
I swam normally for the next 2 hours. Yet again I had managed to arrange my
last feed to mean that I had less than an hour to go. As I came into the
beach there was another swimmer there being encouraged by the beach crew.
This was the first time he'd done more than 1.5 hours and was very close to
achieving his 6 hour qualifier. He was cold, very cold, but determined. I
swam with him for safety and he made the 6 hours - another great moment!! I
just had 6 minutes left so swam out a bit and back. The distance may have
been poor, but it was an eventful swim.
Total of 12 hours 20 mins in the weekend. Now I am tired....
Water Temperature: 16.1oC
Conditions:
Weird!
When we arrived the water was as flat as a pancake, the
sun was out, not a cloud in the sky and it was beautifully warm. The task
set for me - 7 hours.
As we've mentioned before this sport is approximately 80% mental and 20%
everything else. On Saturday my head was in the right place. I got in 10
minutes early and all was well with the world. I did my first 2 hours but
that would mean going in for a feed at 10:50 when really, if I had got in on
time I would be due a feed at 11am, so I did a bit extra and went in at
about 11:05. Each hour I repeated this and progressively fed later and
later. This would mean that after my last feed I would only have 20 mins
left.
After about an hour of lovely weather I noticed fog starting to roll down
from the castle and someone flicked the switch on the washing machine. The
washing machine was only on a short cycle and the water calmed down after
another hour or so, but the fog kept rolling in and rolling back out -
weird!!!
This was all going well until the penultimate feed. About 20 minutes after
the feed I started feeling really ill. I wish I could have been sick to get
rid of whatever it was that was causing the problem, but I couldn't, and 6
hours 20 mins into my 7 hour swim I had to get out. Annoying as it was
frustratingly close the 7 hour mark.
After the swim we had a bite to eat while waiting to wave off someone making
their solo attempt last night. I then went to check into my hotel, only to
find that the room had been cancelled and due to the carnival they, and many
other hotels, were fully booked. The only one that I could find was
extortionately expensive, so at 9.15pm I drove home - not impressed as by
this time I was very tired!!
Water Temperature: 15.3oC
Conditions:
Very foggy
Yesterday I got to the beach at 0600 to keep Freda company when she put a swimmer in the water early to get a 10 hour swim done. Today I was also there before 0600, this time I had planned to get early so that I could also finish nice and early, but it didn't go quite to plan. For some reason I felt very depressed. Perhaps it was the really thick fog (and it was very thick), perhaps it was due to the end of my training holiday and the thought of returning to normality and perhaps it was just one of those days. Who knows!! What I do know was that it was remarkably like a feeling of panic. Having intended to get in at 6am I still wasn't in a state to get in a 9am when everyone else got in. I eventually got in for a short swim with one of my relay swimmers as she had a 2nd attempt at her qualifying swim. By this point I was feeling relaxed again.
I don't know what it was all about but it did make me realise that I am not ready and my swims this year are looming ever closer. Next weekend I need to crack this. This is not how I planned my training break to finish!
Water Temperature: 15.1oC
Air Temperature: 13-15oC
Wind:
5-7 knots of wind
Conditions:
Clear & mostly sunny, water very calm
Freda asked me to do 3 hours today because of my shoulder, which I was very surprised by. I said that I would do more if my shoulder was OK.
There were parts of the swim where the great form I felt last week came back - at these times I feel like all the energy is being applied in the right way and that I'm flying. I need to build on this. My shoulder did ache, but held up for the 3 hours. I got the feeling that it wouldn't last much longer and as I want to break the pattern of doing a long swim and then needing to take a day off or take it very easy the next day I opted to stop at 3 with the intention of doing a longer swim tomorrow.
My shoulder did ache when I got out so hopefully this was the right decision.
Water Temperature: 15.4oC
Air Temperature: 16-17oC
Wind:
10 knots of wind
Conditions:
Rainy, no visibility and just after thunderstorm!!
I swam later today as one of my relay swimmers was coming down to attempt her qualifying swim. Quite pleased as I missed out on swimming in a thunderstorm which the others did!! By the time we got in the heavy downpour had stopped, we did have a little rain but not too bad. It was very overcast and visibility was poor, but the water was lovely and calm.
Sissy had done a split 2 hour swim before, but never 2 hours all in one go. She did it - I'm very impressed!! She handled it extremely well. I just hope the rest of the outstanding swims are completed so that she can actually get a swim in the relay.
I can't believe that this is my last week day on my break. I have had such a great time and would love to stay with the others and train for a few more weeks.
Water Temperature: 15.2oC
Air Temperature: 16oC
Wind:
13-14 knots of wind
Conditions:
Sunny, windy and very choppy!
As I got away with yesterday's swim without causing more damage to my shoulder I have built up the time again today. I did just over 2 hours today and the shoulder hurt the whole time but not enough to stop me swimming and didn't hurt any more than yesterday.
The water was still fairly 'bumpy' at the prince of wales pier end, but not as bad as yesterday. It wasn't as fast as the swims last week, hopefully that's just due to the conditions. All in all an OK swim.
The one good thing about not swimming as much as I had planned is that I have fallen into this lovely lifestyle of swim then sunbathe - this is a life I could definitely get used to. Shame I have to go back to reality after the weekend. During this two weeks I've also enjoyed the company of some absolutely brilliant people whom I will miss chatting and sharing meals with.
Water Temperature: 15.1oC
Air Temperature: 15oC
Wind:
16 knots of wind
Conditions:
Sunny, windy and very choppy!
Today was a test for my shoulder as it was very windy and choppy. It hurt for the first 20 minutes or so, felt fine as I swam across the harbour and then became a bit sore for the last 20 minutes or so (this was when I was in the roughest of the water). All in all I swam for about 70 minutes in probably the toughest conditions this year (in terms of waves) and it does seem to have held up. Fingers crossed I can build it up again from here.
The wind was blowing towards the Prince of Wales pier which meant the ferry wall end was unusually calm and the washing machine had temporarily relocated to the other end. Waves are fun, you never know quite what to expect! What I wasn't expecting was the patch of really warm water right by the prince of wales pier. It was a very large patch of water that felt at least 4C warmer than everywhere out - it was like a warm bath - most bizarre!!
Water Temperature: 14.7oC
Conditions: Mostly
sunny, fairly calm
I was really tired today after getting back to the hotel after 1am this morning following driving home for a meal with the family for fathers day.
We only planned to do a couple of hours to loosen up after the weekend, however my shoulder really hurt today which prevented me from really getting into my stroke. I tried everything - doggie paddle, breaststroke arms, even backstroke, but none of it worked, the shoulder still hurt and because of this and I couldn't zone out and cut the swim very short, just to the ferry wall and back.
I need to get back to the swims I had last week, they were fantastic.
Water Temperature: 14.6oC
Conditions: Mostly
sunny, fairly calm
I decided to only do a short swim today to let my shoulder recover. For the first hour or so I swam with some of Tanya's relay swimmers trying to keep them going while they were attempting their qualifying swim. Probably quite a good move as it allowed me to warm up gradually although it did make me feel cold as I wasn't swimming as hard as usual.
Once I finished with the relay swimmers I did a single lap. My shoulder hurt a bit but didn't feel as bad as I expected. Fingers crossed that it is now recovering.
Water Temperature: 14.6oC
Conditions:
Overcast & a bit breezy at times
Today was my first attempt at a 6 hour swim since 2007.
Today was the day of the champion of champions event. I didn't enter this year. But it did mean that, apart from the first 2 hours, that we only had the 'washing machine' end (from beach to ferry wall) to train in. Because there was a bit of breeze it made the water quite choppy which was great training, but the wind did make me feel a lot more chilly than usual.
Yesterday I had been to see my chiropractor due to my left shoulder. He identified that it was actually caused by the fact that I only breath to one side and as a result, the muscles in my back were not correctly aligned which in turn affected the way that the shoulder moves. As a result I was hopeful that it wouldn't hurt during this swim. I was wrong!! It hurt from the word go and kept on hurting! I was so determined to finish this swim that I didn't mention the pain at any of the feeds until the last one. If I was asked if I was OK I just said 'yes' and got on with it. On my last feed I did mention to Louise that my shoulder really hurt. She very kindly asked if I wanted to get out, to which I quickly replied 'no', to which she replied 'good, I wasn't going to let you out anyway!'. Hilarious, that really made me smile!! Freda was away at the Irish training camp this weekend, she has no need to worry, the beach crew did a fabulous job in her absence!!
I finished the swim, but didn't have the same buzz at the end as I did after the great swims earlier in the week. I need to get this shoulder fixed.
Water Temperature: 14.1oC
Air Temperature: 13-15oC
Wind:
5-11 kts
Conditions:
Generally gorgeous - sunny & flat, wind picked up for about 45 mins
Despite the sun being out and it being a gorgeous morning, the water felt cold for the first couple of hours. Again stroke felt good, although left shoulder hurting a little more than yesterday.
I had a few negative thoughts in the 2nd hour and broke my stroke a few times. However I carried on and got over the moment - which I'm really glad I did. I gave the police patrol boat a quick wave as they passed at the end of my 2nd hour.
I eventually decided that 4 hours would do for me today, but it was a good, positive 4 hours. Good head training if you like.
After the swim I was picking up a sandwich for Rick & I when this gentleman came up to me and asked how long I swam for. I told him 4 hours. He said he knew it was at least 3 from watching me. I found out that he was here with someone who was planning the Arch to Arc challenge this week. I then found out that he was Tom Watch whom I had read about in Andy Mouncy's book 'London to Paris the hard way'. He told me that he has trained many channel swimmers over the years in Weymouth and said that all you do is your six hour swim twice. I pointed out that I thought I would need a third!! To which he said one of the nicest things. He said that he had trained many swimmers of all 12 yr olds, 13 yr olds etc and none had as nice a stroke as mine and none took more than 15 hours. How lovely was that!!
Water Temperature: 14.0oC
Conditions: Overcast
to start with, sun during last hour, water nice and flat
Just a short recovery swim today. I did 2 full laps plus an extra 100m to make sure it was at least 5k, all in a time of 2hrs and 5mins.
The swim felt simply great. Stroke felt easy and in control. I could have swum for hours. My left shoulder is a bit sore, so might need to watch that, but injury to right wrist has now gone.
Towards the end of the swim I felt a bit like target practice - water users of every type conceivable were out: large yachts; sailing dingys; kayakers; windsurfers; ribs - you name they were there, and most of them were beginners so difficult to predict what they were going to do!!
I didn't train last week as I was out observing a relay swim.
Water Temperature: 13.9oC
Conditions: Overcast
to start with, sun after 2 hours, nice and flat
My stroke felt strong, relaxed and in control. I came into the beach at just over 4 hours and mentioned to be asked how I was. I was great. I said I could do a 5th hour so that said 'go on then!'. So I did just that!
During the 5th hour my shoulder, back and right wrist started to fatigue. I could have done 6 hours, but it would have been more of a struggle. I'm pleased with a strong 5 hours instead.
PSP22 is definitely the way forwards. Not even the slightest hint of sickness - now that is a relief!!
Water Temperature: 14.0oC
I was still absolutely shattered when I got up this morning, I was also still feeling sick from yesterday. The task set was 6 hours. This was simply not going to happen. I got to the ferry wall and that was about my limit. I struggled back with doggy paddle, kick and bits of freestyle. I got out and went back to my hotel room and slept on and off until mid afternoon. This was exhaustion, plain and simple.
I also think that it is becoming clear that I need to change my feeding strategy. Maxim is not working. Some of this exhaustion may be due to the fact that I am not absorbing the energy from Maxim and effectively swimming without much of a feed. I remember another swimmer who struggled with maxim switching to PSP. I'll give that a go tomorrow (supplies secured from Tesco!)
Water Temperature: 13.8oC
Wind:
4-12 kts
Conditions:
Nice and calm until last hour when the wind picked up and created some
waves
This was the first day of my training 'holiday'. Rick, Andy & I planned a 5 hour swim and that is exactly what we did. Louise and Michelle were fantastic and acted as beach support feeding us and generally looking out for us.
I swam with Andy. The first 3 hours were fine, after that it started to hurt! I felt hungry for the first 3 hours and after that just felt sick and continued feeling sick for hours afterwards. By the time I finished I was totally shattered. I suppose the last few weeks at work have taken their toll and I'm running on vapours.
It took all my energy to just take my stuff to my room at which point I just collapsed!!
Still job done - 5 hours in the bag.
Water Temperature: 12.9oC
Air Temperature: 14oC
Wind:
10-14 kts
Conditions:
Beautifully sunny, not a cloud in the sky. Variable wind made it a
bit bumpy at times
What a great day. The solo swimmers that did 4 hours yesterday were asked to do 5 hours today. Freda asked me to do what I could, but at least 3 hours.
The water felt great and I was just gliding along effortlessly. I definitely swim better on my own as I really manage to switch off. I even lost track of how long I'd swum for. It felt so great I - I realised that this is what it is all about!!
I fully intended to do either 4 or 5 hours and it really felt like nothing could stop me. It felt so much easier than the 3 hours last week and one saying kept going round in my head 'if not now, when?'. Today was the day!!
No doubt entered my mind until 3.5 hours, it was almost as if I was on a high. I felt ultra positive. And then I hit a wall!! It seems my fitness wasn't quite in the same place as my unusually positive mental attitude.
I ended up swimming 4 hours 2 minutes during which I did 3 full laps and last lap to ferry wall then to last pole and back. I have no doubt that my fitness will enable me to do more next week.
On the way home I popped into training at CLFS to drop off light sticks to some of the relay swimmers. Goodness only knows why, but I decided to do a quick swim. I did a total of 1500m in 37 mins in unpleasantly warm water 30.6C. The stroke felt fine but there was no speed - I was running on vapours.
Now I feel pleasantly knackered and everything apart from blinking is a challenge!!
Water Temperature: 12.7oC
Conditions:
Variable - better than anticipated given wind
Swim time:
2 hours
Distance:
Full lap plus ferry wall & back to last pole and back
At this point I was in two minds as to how long to swim. I have got loads of work to do but at the same time wanted to do the full four hours. As I was swimming along debating this in my mind I noticed one of the yellow hat swimmers doing very slow head up breaststroke beyond the slopey groyne. I went over to see if he was OK. When I got there I could see that he was cold as he was shivering. I asked him if he wanted to get out or complete the swim. He wanted to swim on and although he was shivering he didn't appear to be dangerously cold.
I swam with him encouraging him to do front crawl to keep warm. He was swimming so slowly that I did doggy paddle to stay with him which hurt my shoulder. Eventually I realised that it was shallow enough to walk, so I walked with him (he was swimming) for the last 20 minutes. I have total respect for him. He stayed in and did the 2 hours despite being so cold.
I warmed up really quickly and didn't even need warm trousers, fleece or warm socks. Just 3/4 trousers and a t-shirt!! That's a first for me.
I'm glad I got out when I did. I didn't stop working until 2230 with loads left to do. Any longer and I would have been too tired to work and wouldn't have finished as much as I did.
Water Temperature: 12.2oC
Air Temperature: 16oC
Conditions:
Variable
When we wandered down to the beach today it was raining and the rain was cold. There weren't many swimmers (20 in total). I'd had heartburn last night and still had a dodgy stomach today, so Freda let me off with a short swim and a yellow hat. The task should have been feed at 2 hours and come in at 3 hours, if the weather had improved stay in for 4 hours.
Even within the space of the 1hr 10mins that I did we had a lot of variability. When I started the water was very calm and it was raining. After about 40 minutes the wind suddenly picked up and the flags were standing to attention. The wind caused big rolling waves which were great fun!! Surprisingly the wind didn't cause the windchill that I experienced last week. I got out after a very slow 1hr 10min lap, feeling a bit better than when I went in. I know I could have done more, maybe even 3 hours. I'm now left wondering if the sickness was real or created in my mind.
When I got out the sun came out, the rain had stopped and the wind died down. The water became lake like again and it became a beautiful day!!
Major task - get my head in gear!!!
Water Temperature: 12.2oC
Air Temperature: 16oC
Wind:
7 knots
Conditions:
Fairly calm, sunny, cool breeze
The task today was a choice of 3 hours or 4 hours with a feed at 2 hours (and 3 if you opted for 4 hours). I started out knowing that 3 hours was do-able as I had done just that yesterday, so maybe I'd go for 4 hours. But a combination of factors such as tiredness from yesterday, the cold wind and my head not being in the right place led me to leave the water after 1hr 27min.
The water definitely felt colder than yesterday and I had a small shiver in the water, I also had a bit of a back spasm and was a bit concerned that my back injury from earlier in the year would recur. I was not the only one who came out early feeling the cold. But if I'm honest with myself with hindsight I think it was more of a mental than physical barrier. I'm sure I could have done more really. I also decided during my swim that the Cork training camp isn't the best idea for my training at this stage, mainly because the water is significantly colder than Dover and I don't think that it will help either building my time in the water or improve my mental state. I think I'll spend the time in Dover instead.
Tomorrow is another day and as it's a Bank Holiday it's another swimming day!
Water Temperature: 12.5oC
Air Temperature: 13oC
Conditions:
Calm, warm, mostly sunny
I was expecting to do a 3 hour swim sometime this weekend, but I wasn't expecting it on the first day of a long weekend! I dread what Sunday and Monday will bring!!
However the water was much nicer than last week and no windchill. So the task was 3 hours with a feed at 1.5 hours. At times it was almost pleasant. The sun, when it was out, was really warm.
I swam to the ferry wall, stopped for a brief chat with Megan, then to the opposite side saying hello to a couple of swimmers along the way. Then back to the slopey groyne and in for a feed. This was exactly 90 minutes. I did the same for the 2nd half. Total swim time 3 hours 3 minutes.
When I got to the slopey groyne for the first time, there were a couple of girls in bikinis trying to pluck up the courage to jump in. One asked 'is it cold?' to which I replied 'it is a bit!'. After I'd turned around to swim back I glanced back to see that one had jumped in and was frantically trying to get back out again - looked a bit like a cat falling into water and frantically trying to get out - very funny!! I don't think it was what she was expecting and I very much doubt the other one tried it!
The temperature of the water was odd - the surface water was quite warm but a foot or so down it was quite chilly - right were you do your pull. I noticed at one point that my thighs were getting cold - I then realised that my thighs were getting cold - I then realised that it was because I was shoving lots of cold water that direction with each arm pull!!
There were also huge patches of cold water - which quickly dragged you out of any daydream state that you may be in - straight back to reality!
I wouldn't say it was an easy swim, but at least there weren't any moments when I thought I couldn't do it!
Water Temperature: 11.6oC
Air Temperature: 11.8oC
Conditions: Even
rougher than yesterday, confused sea 18-21 knots, small white horses in
harbour
When I looked out of my hotel room last night the harbour water was beautifully calm. Problem is that when I looked at windfinder I knew it wouldn't last!! The wind was predicted to be 18 knots and rising. The prediction was right!!
Freda decided that today was the day to go to one longer swim for both soloists and relay swimmers. The challenge was 2 hours for red hats with an option to come out after 1hr 30mins because it was so cold. Relay swimmers had 1 hour.
The wind was really strong and it was only going to get worse, so we got going as soon as we were ready. The breakers on the beach made it challenging to get in, but once in the water felt quite warm - to start with anyway.
The water was much rougher than yesterday. Yesterday it was large rolling waves and fairly predictable. Today the sea state was much more confused and I got a fair battering along with drinking a fair amount of sea water. There were even small white horses to be seen.
The strong cold wind made me feel really cold. The washing machine was still in overdrive and out of bounds, so I went to the sloping groyne, to the pier, to the sloping groyne and back plus a bit. This was 1 hour 20 mins and I was now very cold so I got out. I don't know how the people who made 2 hours did it. I take my hat off to you!!
On the way home I stopped at the top of the cliff above Shakepear beach and took this photo to show just how rough it was outside the harbour and what we're protected from:
After arriving home I was totally shattered. I now know that I couldn't have done any more.
What will next week bring - 2-3 hours perhaps? Let's hope for better weather.
Water temperature: 11.5oC
Air temperature: 11.8oC
Conditions: 20
knot winds, overcast, breakers on the beach, frisky water
There was quite a wind blowing today - approximately 20 knots, all the flags were stiff in the wind, and there were breakers on the beach. The photo shows a bit, but as there's nothing to take scale from you'll have to take my word that it was a bit rough!
The 'washing machine' was on spin cycle so was out of bounds for today. You could also tell that it had been rough a while as the normally nice gently sloping beach now resembled a pebble mountain where they'd all been pushed up hill clear of the water.
As I drove down I knew it was going to be a 'fun' session as shakespear beach was rough, very rough with lots of white horse to be seen out to sea. Fortunately the harbour provides some shelter and enables training to continue.
I had the feeling that it was all starting to slip out of reach yesterday so today was all a bit daunting. I just can't seem to get well, and I'm falling further and further behind in training.
Today was going to be first longer swim of the season rather than 2 swims, but the conditions dictated 2 shorter swims.
Swim 1: 50 minutes
It's always fun getting in when it's rough.
Painful pebbles underfoot make balance difficult on a calm day, but rough
conditions make it quite amuzing!! The weirdest thing happened as I got in
- I had an asthma attack. That's never happened before. It wasn't the cold
as it actually felt quite warm, but it took me a couple of minutes before my
breathing was under control and allowed me to get in properly. Once I was
in it was OK though.
I swam to the sloping groyne, stopped for a quick chat with Chris Sheppard. Then swam close to the pier and back. All in all 51 minutes and 1,800m.
Swim 2: 1 hour
I was still shivering an hour later when it
was time to get back in. Freda took heart and asked me to do just 30
minutes. That felt like a cop out, but it did take the pressure off. Once
I got in I felt fine. It was almost as if the water was warmer than the
beach!!
I followed the same route - left to the sloping groyne. No chatting this time and then back to the beach to say that I was OK and would carry on. We had a bit of rain just before the half hour. It's no problem for us in the water, but not so nice for the beach team. I then went from there to the pier and back. I still had a bit of time to spare so I swam to between the last pole and the first groyne and back. All felt OK, but I did have a good shiver afterwards!!
I'm glad I did the full hour (61 minutes actually) as I would have beaten myself up otherwise.
Thanks for the smarties Louise - Mum's the word!!!
Sea temperature:
10.9C (Sat); 10.8C (Sun); 10.8C (Mon)
Air temperature:
10.1C (Sat); 10.2C (sun); 9.2C (Mon)
Conditions:
Saturday & Sunday - simply beautiful - flat calm and mostly sunny; Monday
bright with a very chilly breeze (brrrrr)
Time in water: Saturday - 35 mins & 45 mins; Sunday - 40
mins & 45 mins; Monday 62 mins
I don't know where the winter has gone!! Suddenly it's time for Dover training again. We had a brilliant weekend - beautiful weather. There were 90 swimmers on Saturday, 93 on Sunday and 40 on Monday - an awesome sight.
Looks can be deceptive though - it was err - bracing to say the least. It was touch and go as to whether I should be swimming at all as I'm probably not entirely well. However this year I am determined not to get left behind in training and given how quickly the time builds up I'm not taking any chances.
I was shocked when Freda said 35 mins for the first swim - what ever happened to the first weekend being 10 - 20 minutes?! I was even more shocked when the next swim was 45 minutes. Freda never ceases to amaze me!!
After training on Saturday Michelle and Louise 'kidnapped' me for afternoon tea. It was fabulous!!
Monday was sunny again, but a very chilly wind soon picked up. We started a little early in case it really picked up. The task was 1 hour and on Sunday that would have been very do-able. Today it was cold, very cold. The breeze really chilled the skin out. The parts of me that remained submerged were OK, it was literally just the wind chill effect. However I finished the task and came back to the beach after 1 hour and 2 minutes. I got changed quickly and hid in the car - just to get out of the bitterly cold wind.
All in all a very successful weekend. Open water training remains on target even if pool training is not so good.
Sea temperature:
11.6C
Air temperature:
8.9C (Sandettie)
Conditions:
Overcast, slight breeze, water flat calm
Jim, Phil, Lesley & I headed to Hayling for a very quick dip early in the season. The weather was overcast, but the sea was flat calm.
The swim was a very simple swim to the first buoy and back. My first mistake was to forget to put any earplugs in!!
It took ages to get to the buoy the tide kept pushing us towards the shore and back to where we came from. We stopped to regroup briefly. I felt fine until I stopped and looked up and then I had some visual disturbance. I put it down to the lack of earplugs. Because of that I decided to do a simple swim back rather than go any further - just in case.
We flew back!! There certainly was a strong tide!! When I stood up at the end I had the same visual disturbance again along with a slight loss of co-ordination - very strange - first time that's ever happened. I don't think that cold was the issue and I didn't take too long to recover. Perhaps it was the lack of earplugs causing a problem with the labyrinthitis.
It's a tradition to have a group 'dip' in the harbour the morning after the annual dinner and this year was no exception. It was an absolutely gorgeous morning, the sun was out and the sea was as flat as a pancake from the pictures you'd think it was a beautiful mid summer day (until you look closely and notice that those who were not swimming were wearing coats!!
Lauren decided that she wanted to swim as well so we were the first two to head down to the water's edge.
Slightly hesitant Lauren lags behind as she realises just how cold it really is at this time of year.
Lauren eventually got her whole legs wet but I was determined to swim properly. I wasn't in long enough to get a temperature reading from my watch, but Sandettie is running at about 7.8C which is good approximation and that is COLD!! I've never swum in this temperature before.
My legs quickly went numb, but the pain in my hand when I first put them in the water was incredible. Eventually I started to swim and put my head in - OMG!! It was like brain freeze from slush puppies magnified 100 fold!!
I didn't stay in long - about 10 mins but I'm really glad I swam it feels like the season has started - how exciting!! As you can see from the photo of me and Hoffy - once out of the water I'm warm again - no sign of a shiver. Just a lovely dip amongst a great group of friends.
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I've had simply the best weekend!! I picked Georgia up from school (she's been away on a German exchange) after which I picked up Josh from coaching and then Ned Denison to make our way to Dover for the CS&PF AGM and Annual Dinner.
Georgia & Josh were left at the hotel while Lauren, Sam & I headed to Dover Town Hall to help set up for the dinner and attend the AGM. The hall already looked great when we got there, we just got to put the finishing touches together. It looked great and it would host 208 people in the evening.
After finishing the preparation we retreated back to the hotel to prepare.
When we arrived later the hall was already thriving. With social networking sites it's a much smaller world and I keep in touch with many people in the swimming community on a regular basis but it's always better to meet up in person and this was the perfect opportunity.
As usual, Cliff was the MC and ensured that there was an appropriate tone of irreverance. Balloons shooting all over the place:
The awards ceremony is the highlight of the evening. First all of the soloists for the year are congratulated, thene the individual awards:
The Eurotunnel Award
For the fastest CS&PF English Channel Swim of
2008
Doreen Miller (USA) - 10hrs 17mins
The Gertrude Ederle Award
For the most meritorious CS&PF English
Channel swim by a woman in 2008
Elizabeth Fry (USA) - 12 hours 1 min
Elizabeth went on to attempt a 2 way crossing, but unfortunately the
conditions deteriorated and she had to abort. At one point she was on track
to land on the swimmers beach during training!!
The Des Renford Award
For the most meritoriuos CS&PF English
Channel swim by a man in 2008
Marcel Degreef (Netherlands)
19hrs 50mins
The Peter Adams Award
For the successful CS&PF endurance English Channel swim of 2008
Denise Richards (UK)
22hrs 6mins
The Frank Richards Endurance Award
For the unsuccessful CS&PF endurance English Channel swim of 2008
Ros Hardiman (UK)
25hrs 14mins
Ros is a paraplegic who swam on the same day as our 2nd attempt at the 3 person relay. How she survived that long in that temperature I will never know. She was pulled from the water with only 700m to go. On the day there were people from all round the world glued to their screens willing her on. It was a real show of the community spirit that exists within the channel swimming community.
Ros is swimming again this year on the same tide as me - go Ross!!
The Audrey Scott Award
For the youngest successful CS&PF English Channel swimmer for 2008
Rajesh Shinde (India) 23 yrs
14hrs 46mins
The Ray Scott Award
For the oldest successful CS&PF English
Channel swimmer of 2008
George Hunihan (USA) 54yrs
16hrs 30mins
The Alison Streeter Award
For the fastest two-way CS&PF English Channel
swim of 2008
Dublin Fire Brigade (Ireland)
21hrs 12mins
The Barrie Darling Award
For the CS&PF Pilot / Crew member of 2008
Paul Foreman & Pace Arrow
This was Paul's first season - and an excellent one it was too!!
The Dover Straits Award
For the fastest CS&PF Standard Relay English Channel crossing of 2008
Dover Lifeguard Club 2008 (UK / Slovakia)
10hrs 2mins
The longest CS&PF Standard Relay English Channel
crossing of 2008
Serpentine Afghan appeal (International)
23hrs 16mins
The CS&PF Observer of the year 2008
Jenny Hanson
Most meritorious Special Category CS&PF Relay
English Channel crossing of 2008
Three Brids & a Boat (UK) - yes that was our
swim!!!!
11hrs 30mins
The CS&PF Sunny Lowry Special Thanks Award 2008
Irene Wakeham
Irene is always on the beach - week after week in all weathers - very
well deserved award
Jersey Long Distance Swimming Club Award
Successful CS&PF swim against all odds
Benjamin Greensmith
15hrs 25mins
Benjamin is a member of the armed forces and overcame injury in the line of
duty in order to complete this swim
Seafarer Award
Fastest solo CS&PF swim by a British person
Katie Goodall
10hrs 23mins
I was the observer for this swim - it was truly awesome - a textbook swim
The Leo Cox Award
For the fastes CS&PF Junior Relay English Channel crossing of 2008
Clissold swimming Club (2)
Absolutely amazing!!! Well done everyone!
